As Shiori heads off, she waits for Hinako to take a bath. Ayame meets her, and obviously, she looks pretty suspicious.
From last time, we know that Hinako is being a bit too close to Ayame. It’s not too surprising, given that she looks like Hinako’s mother. Still, some details suggest she may not be human. Besides that creepy smile from last time, she has two hair clips that are shaped like the kanji for mouth. Hinako didn’t realize until the last minute that she saw another large mouth out of the back of Ayame’s head. It is Ayame who revealed that she lost a child from her first marriage.
What she didn’t realize was that she was killed by him with an axe to the back of her head. We know that she is not human, as Hinako ran away to her until she tripped on a rock near a lake. Ayame is basically what you call a Futakuchi-onna, a youkai that has two mouths. Still, looks very scary compared to a Pokémon, Mawile, which is based on the same yokai. Obviously, she is attracted to Hinako for the same reason that she wields an axe.
Basically, she used her long tongue to restrain Hinako’s axe so Ayame could kill her in the same way. Funny how Hinako almost thought about giving up here to get what she wanted all along, but her subconscious causes her to move to prevent that. She ended up with a minor scrape on her wrist.
Ayame licked the blood on Hinako’s wrist, and she basically lost her appetite. She revealed what Hinako didn’t know. It goes back to what Miko revealed to Shiori about Hinako’s scar. She mentioned that Hinako had somehow recovered fully despite the scars on her body from that accident. Miko felt that there was no way that Hinako could heal that easily. We find out more later what Ayame means by this.
Shiori eventually shows up and transforms into her mermaid form to kill Ayame. Hinako finds out that Shiori is not the stereotypical mermaid that you find in Western stories, but scary creatures that have scales, sharp teeth, antlers that look like reefs, and sharp nails. Even after Shiori saved her and walked her back, she didn’t talk to her. I guess Shiori felt some guilt for not protecting Hinako from threats and showing her proper form.
Thankfully, Miko fixed her up, although she was crying a lot over the incident. After changing the bandages, the cut was gone. Surprisingly, when the old lady arrived, she didn’t recognize Ayame. I guess this is true of most Youkai, since they don’t leave a trace. What is surprising is that when Hinako wanted to get her phone, Miko didn’t come with her. Hinako is being a bit risky, knowing that she almost got herself killed.
However, Ayame shows up, and we finally learn more about the mermaid blood. She is not so threatening now since Ayame knows that Hinako is Shiori’s. Ayame believes Hinako underwent some ritual, which is why Hinako has mermaid blood. Hinako seems perplexed about why else Shiori would appear out of nowhere. Also, she has no recollection of doing this with Shiori. I have a feeling that what Shiori said about wanting Hinako to mature enough so she will taste good might be a lie. Maybe Shiori has no intention of eating Hinako, since mixing their blood would make Hinako taste bad. Well, part of why Shiori’s blood is there is to save Hinako, as it has healing powers, but there is another reason that she won’t reveal yet. In the last episode, she said that what she is doing to Hinako is for her own benefit. I still wonder what it is.
Even so, I kind of feel bad for Miko as she didn’t stand a chance. She sacrificed so much, but Shiori already claimed Hinako. It’s a shame, since I was rooting for Miko as the underdog, but it’s clear that Shiori has had the upper hand all along. That is to say, I wonder what will actually happen next, knowing that Hinako knows this information.
(Also known as This Monster Wants to Eat Me)
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